Life is Hell
by Twilight Hallovstwien
Summary: What happens when a new face rises in Rapture, and a boy and his sister are caught in the center? EDIT: Changed the rating to M just in case. There will be very...graphic scenes later on. CURRENTLY ON HIATUS (at least until I can get my crap sorted out)
1. Chapter 1

This is the first FanFiction I have written, so any reviews would be very helpful.

Rapture. Once a city in its prime, built and ruled by Andrew Ryan, then by Frank Fontaine. After Hephaestus blew, it was run by the Rapture family, with Sophia Lamb at the helm. Big Daddies roamed the streets, using Little Sisters to collect ADAM from the insane population of Splicers. At one time, it was the pinnacle of brilliant engineering and scientific development. Now however, there wasn't a place in the crumbling city where you wouldn't find trash, broken furniture and bottles, Splicers killing each other brutally for food, supplies, and ADAM.

Sections of the city were now completely collapsed, and others were flooded, making them completely inaccessible. Water dripped from windows, the walls, and the ceiling. The Gatherer's Gardens were mostly all destroyed, Splicers searching for plasmids and ADAM. It was rare now to see a Big Daddy, either patrolling one of the non-flooded sections or making repairs to machinery, and even rarer still to a Big Daddy with a Little Sister. The screams of Big Sisters however, were fairly common compared to the sound of Big Daddies tramping around.

Since Jack and Subject Delta either harvested or saved all of the Little Sisters they found, the Big Sisters were the ones harvesting the most ADAM in Rapture now. It would not be uncommon to see one jump down from the ceiling, stab a Splicer through the heart, drain the ADAM out and then leave, all in the space of a few seconds. The small amounts of sane population remaining were smart enough to stay as far away from ADAM and Splicers as possible. Gunshots and explosions were regular noises heard throughout Rapture, as were maniacal laughter and pained screams.

In a deep, secluded part of Arcadia lived a mother, with her son and her daughter. She taught her children essential skills to survive in rapture, like how to hide in plain sight, how to shoot, how to fight in hand to hand combat, how to scavenge useful materials, to stay away from ADAM, gene tonics and plasmids. She had taught them how to survive. She had a secret however; one that would cost her her life and throw her son and daughter into a hellish nightmare neither would wake from for a very long time.


	2. Chapter 2

Any reviews would be much appreciated!

"Honey! I'm going to see if I can't find any more food and water, okay? Stay here with your sister while I'm gone. If you're good, I'll bring you back something special."

The boy looked up from where he was sitting near his sister and nodded to his mother. They lived in a small shack in Arcadia, completely covered in vines and other vegetation. If you didn't know where to look, you wouldn't have a clue where it was, and the boy liked it that way. It meant the Splicers that roamed Arcadia sometimes couldn't find them. The rare Big Daddy that came though also didn't bother them, as they left them to their business. Big Sisters were also not a problem, as they had no ADAM for the Sisters to harvest.

The boy, named Jaxton, was sixteen, tall, and lanky. He was strong, but lithe. Piercing emerald eyes studied a manual held in pale hands covered in faded leather fingerless gloves over a strong nose. Shaggy black hair swept across his head in messy swathes. He was dressed simply, wearing a pair of comfy boots, a pair of worn jeans, a faded shirt and a leather jacket. A revolver was holstered on his thigh, and he had a bullet belt looped around his waist. A large knife was strapped to his back.

Jax's sister, Seven, was lying on the ground next to him, drawing on a brochure for Ryan Amusements with crayons. She was seven years old ironically enough, with the same hair and eyes as her brother. She was wearing a pair of shorts and a tank top, barefoot and had a knife strapped to one leg. Always the optimist, she hummed or whistled softly while she drew, making senseless tunes. Neither of them used plasmids, but both had seen ADAM and were both proficient at scavenging and at sneaking around unseen.

"Jax, how will she know if we were good and to bring back something special if she isn't here to see if we are being good?" Seven asked after a long period of time while coloring in one of her coloring books, having finished covering the brochure a while ago. A small grin crossed Jaxton's face as he shrugged, setting down one of the few pieces of literature still in Rapture, a service manual for diving suits. He had memorized it front to back, but books were hard to find in Rapture.

"I don't know Sev, maybe she has telepathy so she can see what we are doing?" He wondered out loud. Seven was the only one who could get away with calling him Jax, and he was the only one that could call her Sev. Seven shook her head.

"I don't think so, remember? Mommy said that plasmids and ADAM were the cause of all of the problems down here." She responded, switching colors. Jaxton nodded.

"I remember." He replied, looking down at her drawing. It was that of a Big Sister, but with the helmet off, revealing a human face, not much older than Jaxton. He frowned slightly at the sight, for he could never see any Big Sister calm, nevertheless with its helmet off. Besides, he had thought that the suits were grafted onto the bodies of the ones wearing it.

"Do you like my picture big brother?" Seven asked, holding it up. "I talked to one of them and she took her helmet off and talked to me and was really nice and she protected me from a Splicer and…" I held up my hand to stop her as the ground near our house was trod on. Whilst our house was covered in thick foliage, why bring more attention to somewhere you don't want found than you had to? We had several warning systems, like strategically placed puddles, gravel and tripwires. I looked at her sharply.

_You and I are going to talk after the person is gone, understand?_ I mouthed at her. She nodded sullenly. The trapdoor on the roof opened and Jax drew the revolver, loaded with anti-personnel rounds. He pointed it at the opening as the face of his mother appeared, carrying bundle of items. She dropped it down as he holstered the weapon again and caught the bundle. Food and water was neatly stacked in the cabinet, leaving behind two small vials filled with a vicious red fluid and a third vial filled with a murky green liquid.

"Mother, what are those?" Seven asked curiously, setting her picture down. Jaxton knew what they were however. He had seen them many times, in the hands of Splicers. It was ADAM, in the form of plasmids. Jax snatched the three vials up and shoved them in his pocket.

"You and me, outside." He said to his mother sternly. His mother was slightly taken aback, but she nodded and followed him out.

"What is this about Jaxton?" His mother asked, climbing onto the roof with her son.

"You know exactly what this is about." Jaxton replied, crossing his arms over his chest and turning to face her.

"The vials?" She questioned.

"The plasmids and the ADAM. Why did you bring them here?" Jaxton questioned coldly, reaching into his pocket and holding all three vials up. A Big Sister screamed in the distance, going after some unlucky Splicer. A boot tapped the roof, waiting.

"I got them from a trusted friend. He said that it will give us the ability to grow our own plants and food. Grow our own food! Do you realize how much we need that right now?" His mother countered.

"And the ADAM?" Jaxton asked.

"In case we needed to ever interact with the Splicers, God forbid." She replied. The Big Sister screamed again, closer this time. Seems like the Splicer was trying to run away from it. It would be futile, as Big Sisters are extremely fast. A second one screamed as well, a little ways away from our house. Jaxton gritted his teeth to the ear-splitting sound.

"Our conversation isn't done yet. We'll talk later, but for now, I don't want to be in the way of what the Big Sisters are after. Before they could reenter the house, however, a Big Sister dropped from the ceiling onto the roof and screamed, causing the glass in Jaxton's to crack. Jaxton drew the revolver as the Big Sister thrust its needle through his mother's chest, draining her of any ADAM she may have had. Jaxton was surprised when he caught a glimpse of the storage bottle attached to the Big Sister's extraction needle. It was completely full and the Big Sister gave something like a shriek, surprised. It turned its helmets viewport to Jaxton, glowing red.

Jaxton shoved the vials back in his pocket and quickly changed ammunition, loading armor piercing rounds into the revolver. He raised it back to point at the Big Sister, only to find her gone. He looked around in confusion, until a scream from above drew his attention. He sidestepped as he looked up, causing the Big Sister to miss and for the extraction needle to puncture his left shoulder. The Big Sister screamed in fury and Jaxton screamed back, from pain. He brought his foot up to the Big Sister's chest and kicked upward, sending her flying. The needle was pulled from his shoulder with a nasty _schlick_, blood and ADAM draining from the wound.

_Wait, ADAM? Why would there be….oh, shit! _Jaxton cut his thoughts off mid-flow, seeing the partially drained storage bottle. _What the hell? Big Sisters collect ADAM, not give it out. Christ that hurts. _His shoulder was on fire, the blood/ADAM mixture dripping down his jacket. He fired off a few shots, two going wide and the other harmlessly pinging off of the Big Sister's sloped helmet, leaving a gleaming line above the porthole. The Big Sister dashed at him again, swinging the needle like a blade. Jaxton dodged, the needle catching his ammunition bandolier and ripping it off. It went flying into the bushes.

Jaxton mentally checked his remaining ammunition. He had fired three shots, meaning he had a half loaded revolver and a knife against an enraged Big Sister. Of all the situations Jaxton had ever been in, this was by _FAR_ the worst. In a situation like this, many words can be used to describe it. It can be quite complex. Jaxton went, however, with the first sentence that popped into his head.

"I am _so_ screwed right now."


	3. Chapter 3

Reviews! Comments! Advice! All is welcome as long as you're nice about it, Thanks!

With an enraged scream the Big Sister attacked, stabbing towards Jaxton's face. He jerked is head back fast enough to avoid death, but not fast enough to avoid having his eye gouged out by the needle's razor sharp edge. Jaxton screamed in pain, blood and ADAM once again flowing onto his jacket and shirt. With a backhanded swipe, the Big Sister knocked the revolver out of his hand, sending it flying. The Big Sister's shoulder crashed into his chest, knocking him to the ground. With a pained groan, he reached into his pocket and drew out the three cracked vials, which he held up weakly.

"These are what you're after, right? Here just take them." He pleaded, his arm falling limp to the ground. The Big Sister regarded him angrily. It brought its foot up and stomped on Jaxton's hand, crushing it and the vials. The broken glass, ADAM, the unknown murky green liquid, and plasmids embedded themselves in his veins; bring more searing hot pain to Jaxton's battered body. The Big Sister screamed as the second one dropped straight from ceiling into Jaxton's house.

Inside, Seven screamed as the second Big Sister roughly grabbed her and leaped out of the house, carrying her in the basket attached to the back of its suit. Jaxton gritted his teeth and forced his injured arm to move, drawing his knife and slashing at the Big Sister who had just crushed his right hand. The Big Sister dodged nimbly backwards, landing in a crouch.

"Give me back my sister!" Jaxton demanded, pulling himself to his feet. He was holding the knife in his off hand, but he didn't care right now. Energy ran through him as the burning pain in his eye, shoulder and hand intensified, his remaining eye gleaming like a cold chip of green ice. He rushed his attacker, bringing the knife back to swing. The Big Sister ducked under it and grabbed his throat, trying to crush his windpipe. His wounds were now belching flames, his hand and shoulder an inferno and his damaged eye crying tears of hissing blood.

Jaxton latched his burning hand onto the Big Sisters, whose port hole went from crimson to orange, then back to crimson. The Big Sister screamed, popping his eardrums. Hissing blood started to leak from his ears now to. An arc of electricity jumped from his hand to the Big Sisters, electrocuting it long enough for it to release its grasp on him. The blade in his hand was iced over and when he swung the frozen blade, the extraction needle flew up to meet it. The blade shattered, leaving only a broken hilt left in Jaxton's hand.

The Big Sister rose to its feet silently and grabbed Jaxton's injured shoulder and hand. As Jaxton screamed silently in agony, it held his hand up between them, the porthole turning a yellowish orange before the Big Sister brought its helmet back and smashed it into his forehead, rendering him unconscious.

The second Big Sister jumped down from the roof of the house and strode over to where the first was standing. The first picked up Jaxton's unconscious form and hoisted it over its shoulder. The burning blood dripped onto the ground, forming blazing puddles. The Big Sisters looked at each other.

"What are you going to do to him?" Seven asked, now calm. The Big Sister carrying her turned her helmeted head to regard her.

"We have special plans for you big brother, don't worry though. He'll be fine. You are sure this is what you wanted?" The Big Sister asked, the hash scream and grate all but gone to be replaced by a teenage girls voice. Seven nodded.

"Yeah…did you have to hurt him?" She asked, concerned. The Big Sister that had gone against Jaxton whipped its head towards the girl, porthole glowing orange before turning back to yellow. Seven recoiled a bit, shrinking down into the carrying cage on the Big Sisters back. The Big Sister carrying her glared at the other.

"You don't have to be mean Mav, she was just asking. What do you think of the boy?" The Big Sister said, crossing its arms. The other Big Sister, 'Mav', hissed and jumped up towards the ceiling, burning droplets trailing her. The Big Sister carrying Seven shook its head and sighed, looking back to Seven again.

"Don't mind her. My name is Fay, what is yours? I never got to ask it the last time we met." Fay asked. Seven raised her head a bit out of the basket.

"My name is Seven." She replied, pulling out a crayon she had placed in her pocket when Jaxton had gone to talk to their mother. She started drawing on the air tank of Fay's Big Sister suit.

"Like the number?" Fay asked. Seven nodded. "Cool."

"What is the other big sister going to do with my brother?" She asked, coloring carefully.

"He's going to become a Big Brother." Fay replied, causally strolling towards the farmers market.

"A Big Brother? I thought that there were only Big Daddies and Big Sisters." Seven commented, confused. Fay chuckled.

"Not anymore."


	4. Chapter 4

Reviews! Comments! Advice! All is welcome as long as you're nice about it, Thanks!

Elsewhere, in a corner of Rapture that has been locked down since the first intruder graced its hallowed floors with his evil, a hulk of a man sat comfortably in a chair behind a desk, several sizes too small for his massive frame. The man was well dressed, in a clean suit and tie. Muscles bulged underneath the suit, while a fine Cuban cigar smoldered, resting in an offhand. In the other hand was a revolver. Across the desk form the man where two scientists, visibly shaking.

"Now, tell me again why the Big Brother project has only one successful product, and over three hundred failures?" The hulking man asked casually, taking a drag on the cigar and blowing a puff of aromatic smoke into the air. The two scientists glanced at each other silently, making small gestures for the other to speak up. When neither did for a short time, the man leveled the revolver at the shorter of the two and fired, the anti-personnel round fragmenting inside the cranial cavity and painting the wall red. The headless body dropped silently to the ground.

"It's because the boys that we have been getting from the Big Sisters don't have enough ADAM in their blood, as to the Big Sisters who have had it since adolescence. Because of that, and boys that have that much ADAM in them to begin with are few and far between, wither already having been picked off by the Big Sisters or are dead of overdose, viable candidates are rare. Euphoria was able to be completed because of an electronic jolt delivered just after his heart stopped due to over-splicing." The remaining scientist squeaked out, visibly shaking.

"Euphoria…that's the designation of that boy Orion, correct?" The man asked, taking another drag on his cigar. The scientist nodded quickly.

"Yes sir, Orion Windell, age sixteen, found in…." Another gunshot silences the scientist.

"I don't care where he was found. If the next one doesn't survive, I'll let the Big Sisters deal with you, understand?" The man asked, tapping the ash of his cigar into a porcelain ashtray. The scientist nodded quickly. The hulking man in a fine suit gestured with the revolver, and the scientist quickly turned and left, leaving his dead colleague behind.

After he was gone, the man took another deep pull on his cigar, the put it down in the ashtray. The revolver he slid two rounds into and slipped into his suit. He picked up a file on his desk and looked it over. It was several years old and was on one of the main developers of the Big Sisters, behind Sofia Lamb. There was no picture, but the red block lettering on the front read Jacqueline Maverick. He opened the file and started reading.

* * *

Maverick, Jacqueline H.

Born: May 19, 1931

Hair clr: Blk

Eye clr: Grn

Height: 5'8

Weight: 121

Education: Master's degree in microbiology, Master's Degree in marine biology, Master's Degree in chemistry.

Special notes: At beginning of development, gave up first born child to as a test subject for Little Sister project. As Little Sister grew older, was put in as test candidate for Big Sister project.

Additional notes: Ran away from program after stealing a large quantity of ADAM and injecting into her newborn child. She also fed it several Sea Slugs, estimated number to be around ten.

Whereabouts: Unknown.

Continuing search.

* * *

The man closed the file and snapped his fingers, a small tongue of flame igniting the file and burning it to ash. He smiled.

"I found you."


	5. Chapter 5

Thanks for the reviews! They really are helping me out. This one is a bit long, but it's here! Reviews, Comments and Tips are all welcome!

The scientist used back doors and entrances to quickly cross the distance from the hulking man to the Medical Pavilion, where the newest Big Brother candidate was currently residing. The big sister that had brought him in had done quite a number on him, crushing almost every bone in the boy's left hand, which would require extensive muscular surgery and rehabilitation, tearing and ripping of the shoulder muscles in the upper left shoulder, popping his eardrums, gouging out his eye.

The scientist sighed and motioned for the group of aides to help him get the damaged boy on the operating table. As they did so, the lead scientist took a look at the file concerning the boy. He skipped all of the personal information and notes, jumping straight to the medical material. He hummed as he skimmed through it, noting the –AB blood type. A note next to the blood type made him pause.

"Anderson, is this measurement accurate?" The scientist asked, motioning over one of the aides. Anderson looked at the note and nodded.

"Yes Doctor Stein. I recorded it myself. I realize that it is an unusual way of marking it, but the Parts per Million numbers are exactly the same" Anderson replied.

"The PPM is exactly the same? By the Good Lord above us all, Euphoria didn't have this high a count! Start on the corrective surgery immediately, I don't want to lose this one!" Dr. Stein yelled out, throwing down the file and donning a surgical mask and gloves. No one noticed when the file slid off the desk and fall to the ground behind it, resting in the gap between the back of the desk and the tiled wall.

As they worked, several problems arose. Namely, the plasmids in Jaxton's genetic code had yet to settle, electrocuting, charring and freezing the surgeons dead in their tracks. He was also bleeding out rather quickly. They didn't have any blood to match his own, so Dr. Stein decided to inject him with ADAM, using the properties of the material to simulate blood in Jaxton's veins. When it came time to replace Jaxton's eye, they found they didn't need to, as a new one had already grown in place.

"That is strange…I will have to look into that later." Dr. Stein mumbled to himself, dodging a particularly vicious bolt of electricity. Unknown to the Doctor, the bolt of electricity had fired the machine they had developed to simulate the mental conditioning of Big Daddies and Sisters within an hour or so, instead of weeks or months. What that registered to for Dr. Stein was a small jolt for Jaxton on the table.

Dr. Stein looked around for any aides that were still alive. Several were, though most of them were sporting a burn of some kind or another. He motioned over Anderson, who had the front of his lab coat blackened and charred. His skin underneath was unharmed however. As they maneuvered the still unconscious Jaxton onto a gurney, Dr. Stein pointed it out.

"Oh this? I decided to get the Human Inferno gene tonic awhile back. I was part of the Big Sister project and a few of them got a bit too burn happy with Incinerate. After the first third degree burn, broke down and got it. Seems like a good thing I did too." Anderson replied, brushing some soot off. "He blasted me with a good sized ball of fire there. What plasmids did this kid have before? Had to be at least the third upgrade for incinerate, and I saw Winter Blast and Electro-bolt in there too."

"I don't think his file mentioned any. Let me check." Dr. Stein replied, looking around for the file. He spotted a small pile of ash on the desk. He growled. Anderson looked at him questioningly.

"What's wrong doctor?" He asked, unlocking the gurney's wheels. Dr. Stein pointed at the pile.

"That's where I left his file. Seems like an errant flame got it." He replied angrily. Anderson sighed.

"I think I have a back up file on my computer at Point Prometheus." He said, pulling the gurney into an elevator set into the side of the clinic.

"Good. We'll need it for the grafting of the suit. Do you have everything you need?" Dr. Stein asked. Anderson nodded. "Good. Any survivors, help any that are more wounded than yourself. Meet us at Point Prometheus in an hour."

The doors closed shut silently and headed downward, to a mostly unused access route. It was created so any patients that were in critical condition could be rushed to the Medical Pavilion and so the doctors could reach the patients in time to stop them from dying. Now it was only used by the scientists and the occasional Big Daddy or Sister, as the route was part of a series of tunnels that connected all of Rapture.

As Dr. Stein and Anderson reached the elevator leading to Point Prometheus, Anderson turned to the doctor.

"What is he being turned into?" He asked, looking Jaxton over.

"A Big Brother, like Orion." Dr. Stein replied, also looking over the unconscious form of the boy. He felt a chill crawl down his spine in a very sickening way.

"Another Euphoria?" Anderson questioned, not looking up.

"Not this time. A Halcyon." Dr. Stein replied.

"A Halcyon? I thought that was still in development." Anderson said, the elevator doors opening to reveal a clean lab with several Big Brother suit parts scattered about. Mostly parts for Euphoria, which consists of the basic Big Sister suit, but with a few slight modifications. The corset and leg braces were gone, replaced light armor. The harpoon on the right am was gone, replaced with hard points the ADAM needle could attach to, along with anything the developers wanted to give the Big Brothers. The helmets were different as well, looking more like a full faced helmet than a sphere.

"Anderson, the entire Big Brother project is still in development." Dr. Stein replied, lifting Jaxton onto an operation table and strapping him down with thick, metal backed leather straps. He grabbed a bottle of fluid and drew some into a syringe.

"Fair enough Doctor." Anderson replied as the other medical staff began trickling in.

"Let us begin the operation." Dr. Stein said, plunging the needle into Jaxton's heart.


	6. Chapter 6

Author's note: sorry this one was a while coming. I've been busy lately with stuff and haven't had the time to write that often, but here it is! Comments! Reviews! Suggestions! All are welcome as long as you're nice about it!

The Big Brother woke up in a haze. His head was pounding, his eye, shoulder and hand hurt, and he couldn't remember anything at all. After a short while when his vision adjusted to the dim light of the room he was in, he sat up on the table he was on and looked around. It appeared to be some sort of operating room, with bits and pieces of armor scattered about. On a table off to the side, there was another figure. He instantly recognized it as another Big Brother. The other big brother was holding a box, about four feet long.

"Where am I?" The big Brother on the table asked, reaching up to rub his hurting eye. He noticed the suit he was in. It was the standard Big Brother suit, minus the cage and air tank so he could lie down. He flexed his fingers in his seemingly injured hand and the pain drifted away. An idea coming to him, he rolled his shoulders and blinked a few times. After his shoulders popped, all of the pain left his body. The other Big Brother noticed him awake.

"You, my newest Brother, are in Point Prometheus. Birthplace of the Big Daddy, Sister, and now, Brother projects, in addition to the Little Sisters as well." The other Brother said, hopping off the table and walking over to the operating table. Something flashed in the back of the still sitting Brother's head. Something about a sister….the Brother brushed the thought away.

"Who are you?" He asked. The other Brother seemed surprised.

"Who am I? That's a first. Normally I'm the one asking who people are. Namely those Big Sisters and they aren't so…generous, with that information." The Brother responded cheerfully. "Anyway, My name is Orion Windell, Euphoria class Big Brother, and you are?" Orion asked, gesturing to him. The Brother thought for a moment, coming to a startling conclusion.

"I-I don't know. I think am a….Hal…Halcyon? Something like that." The Halcyon Brother responded. Orion huffed.

"Can't remember your own name?" He asked. The Brother shook his head. Orion shrugged. "Alright, I'll just call you Halcyon for now, Hal for short, is that ok?" The newly renamed Halcyon nodded.

"Yes, that would be fine." Hal replied. Orion clapped.

"Good! Oh, that reminds me. This," He said, pointing to the box, "is for you. Has a choice selection of gear in there for you, pick what you want." Halcyon nodded and swung his legs over the side of the table. He stood slightly unsteadily, getting used to the almost skin tight suit. He strode over to the box, growing steadier with every step. As he reached the box, he turned to Orion.

"How did we become Big Brothers?" Hal asked, turning back to the box and opening it. Inside of the box was a helmet, also close to form fitting. There was a peculiar design etched into the face of the mask, surrounding the angular eye ports completely. Hal shrugged and put the helmet on, sealing it with a hiss. Next to the table was the air tank, which he strapped on next and connected to his suit. He took a deep breath and released it.

"How? Not normally one of the first questions I've heard from the Big Sisters and it certainly wasn't in mine. Honestly? I don't know." Orion said, shrugging.

"It's alright." Hal said, looking over along retractable blade. He placed it on the hard points on his left arm and retracted the blade with a sickening _schlick. _Orion winched under his helmet. That had sounded nasty. As Hal pulled up what was supposed to be his extraction needle, he paused.

"Hey Orion, how many needles do you have on your arm?" Hal asked, still studying the object in his hand. Orion looked at the single needle on his arm.

"One, why?" He questioned, confused.

"That's what I thought, so could you help me understand why I have this?" Hal replied, turning to show Orion a very peculiar extraction needle, which had two instead of one. The twin needles were side by side, with the empty vials attached to the back. Orion shrugged.

"Don't know, but I like it." He commented. Hal nodded, attaching it to the hard points on his right arm and retracting them. As he was about to turn away, he noticed a note in the bottom.

_By the time you are reading this, Halcyon class Big Brother, then I am dead. Know that you are special, Halcyon class, in that you are one of my three greatest achievements. Listen to Orion, he will help you, and look for a Big Sister by the name of Drake. She will help you find who you need to._

_-Dr. J_

Hal reread the letter and folded it up, slipping it into a secure pouch. Orion gestured to the pouch.

"What was that?" He shrugged.

"Just a note from a Dr. J." Hal replied. "Nothing important."

"Alright, if you say so." Orion replied, turning to leave.

"Orion, what do we do now?" Halcyon asked. Orion stopped, turning his helmeted head to look back.

"First, we talk to the Big Sisters. Then," He replied, flicking out the extraction needle and chuckling, "We hunt."


	7. Chapter 7

This one is a bit lengthy, but that happens. Also, there may be a short hiatus because school is starting up soon for me, so I will have even less time to work on this story. I'll try to get them up as soon as I complete the next on. Comments! Reviews! Suggestions! All are welcome as long as you're nice about it!

Hal followed Orion throughout the tunnels closely, not wanting the get lost. As they walked, Hal noticed several signs at various intersections. _Neptune's bounty, Fort Frolic…I've only heard about these places by eavesdropping on Splicers._ Hal thought to himself as bits of memory blinked through his head, slowing down to examine a sign pointed towards Arcadia. A flicker of recognition flashed through Halcyon's mind. He took a half step towards the tunnel before Orion's voice stopped him.

"What are you waiting for, an ADAM soaked invitation? Let's get going!" He called out. Hal looked over at him. He was facing back at him with his arms crossed and his foot was tapping impatiently. It made for a rather interesting sight. Hal glanced back at the tunnel before shaking his head and stepping away from the entrance.

"Yeah, okay." Hal responded, slipping into a light jog. In two steps he passed Orion and he took another two before realizing he had. Hal planted his feet and skidded to a halt, throwing up sparks and tiny rocks off the tunnel floor. Orion ran up to him.

"What was that all about?" Orion questioned. Hal shrugged, just as perturbed as his Brother.

"I don't know, I just wanted to catch up to you. I only took four steps." Hal replied.

"Four?" Orion asked, astonished. Hal nodded and Orion shrugged. "Let's just get going."

"Where _are _we going?" Hal asked, falling into step beside Orion.

"A place referred to as Minerva's Den. That's where the Big Sisters started to gather once Sophia Lamb left with Subject Delta and her daughter Eleanor. The remaining Little Sisters are there too and any surviving Big Daddies pass by once in a while." Orion explained, pausing at a sound. Hal paused too, some unknown instinct telling him to unsheathe the needles and blade. Hal fell into a defensive stance, blade arm forward and gleaming needles cocked back, ready to attack. An animalistic growl escaped his throat unbidden. Orion turned around to see the howling wolf etched into the mask of Halcyon harshly illuminated by the crimson light glaring form the eye ports.

"Hey, it's alright. It's just a rat, see?" Orion said, pointing down the tunnel. A feminine hand clad in an armored suit batted Orion's hand away, surprising the Big Brother.

"I don't like being called a rat Orion." The Big Sister said, stepping into the dim light of the flickering overhead lights from the darkened hall.

"Jana! What are you doing here?" Orion asked, recovering from his shock. Hal growled again, fixing his sight on the unknown figure in front of him. The figure jerked and flicked out its own needle.

"Orion, what the hell is this?" The feminine figure asked, also dropping low and a ball of flame flaring to life. Hal focused on the flame and roared, calling into his genes and igniting a maelstrom of fire around his blade. Orion quickly stepped between the two and held up his hands.

"Hal calm down, she's a friend! Her name is Jana. She's a Big Sister!" Orion yelled above the roaring flames. "Jana, this is Halcyon! He's a new Big Brother, like me! He's a friend also!" Jana lowered her needle slightly and the flame in her off hand grew smaller.

"He's a friend?" She questioned. Orion nodded. She was still for a moment, then stood and sheathed her needle in a single fluid movement. Hal watched her every move, carefully analyzing her ever step and breath. When she stood up and her body language said she was non-hostile, Hal released the flames and also stood, sheathing the blade and needles in the same fluid movement as Jana.

"A friend?" Hal asked, eyeing the Big Sister warily. Orion nodded again. Hal relaxed, his eye ports fading to black. Jana noticed this.

"Orion, is he asleep?" She asked incredulously. Hal shook his head, surprising her.

"Why would I be?" He asked curiously. Jana cocked her head, her spherical helmet tilting to the side.

"Never mind. Orion, Emma wants to talk to you about what happened a few days ago in the Adonis Luxury resort. Bring him along as well." Jana said, turning and slipping into the shadows. She disappeared from hearing a few moments later. Orion turned to Hal.

"That was Jana, as I said. She is quite possibly the one of the best we have in stealth and silent killing, next to Mav and Fay. Those two are unbelievable. Mav once took out a Splicer in the center of a group and the group didn't even notice he was dead until she was long gone. That right there my friend, is skill." Orion said, motioning for Hal to follow him. Hal complied, something about treading through the dark and silence flashing back to him. He remembered stalking though dark corridors, scavenging what he could whilst avoiding Splicers.

"Hey, are you alright?" Orion asked, tapping his plated shoulder. It echoed with a _ting_ through the tunnels. Hal snapped out of it and nodded.

"I'm fine, let's just get going. I don't like this place." He replied, motioning for Orion to lead the way.

"You got it." Orion said, starting off into the dark tunnel. Hal followed closely after, footsteps silent on the concrete floor. Orion turned back slightly, jumping when he saw Hal so close.

"What?" Hal asked, glancing around. Orion shook his head.

"You're quite. I thought you were still a little ways back. I didn't hear you start after me." Orion replied, turning back and starting off again. Hal remained silent for the rest of the trip, thinking over what he had remembered. It was strange. If he was a Big Brother, why would he have hidden from Splicers? He could have just sliced through them with ease and drained their lifeless corpses of the ADAM. He shook his head and followed behind Orion quietly until they reached a large door labeled Minerva's Den in thick white block letters. Orion glanced back at Hal, the green of his eye ports throwing a soft glow across Halcyon's form.

"Welcome to the Den of the most dangerous creatures in Rapture. The Big Sisters, and now, Big Brothers." Orion said, pushing the thick door open with a screech.


	8. Chapter 8

Sorry for the delay, school has been hectic so far. Work on LiH has been slow, but I'm getting there. Comments! Reviews! Suggestions! All are welcome as long as you're nice about it!

As Hal and Orion entered the darkened room, Hal picked up on a few things right away. One, It was _way _too quite. There should have been machinery running, or the hum of electrical wires running through the walls. Two, because of the complete silence, he could here hushed breathing and barely audible giggles coming from a few sections of the room. He couldn't make out any details of the room yet for the complete blackness engulfing the spaces.

Orion closed the door behind them, his green eye ports giving of a soft emerald glow which illuminated his mask. Hal fell into a crouch, hearing unnatural swishes of air float through the room.

_Something's not right here…_ Hal thought to himself. He felt something deep inside shifting, and his vision sharpened and the darkness cleared as if a light had been switched on. Something else shifted as well, some hunting fight or flight instinct going into overdrive, simultaneously adapting Hal's body for optimum combat and evasion situations. Hal viewed this by not viewing it, as his hands, legs and body disappeared. _This could be useful. _Hal thought to himself, grinning slightly under his helmet.

"Hey, Emma!? Jana said you wanted to talk to me?" Orion called out, the emerald glow of his eye ports swinging back and forth as he walked forward into the room. Hal grabbed Orion's shoulder.

"Hold up. There's something here." Hal whispered, stalking forward silently around Orion, who was now looking around in confusion.

"What? Where?" He asked, flicking out his needle and a crouching. A small movement caught Hal's eye and he whipped his head towards it. Two yellow eyes gleamed in the light from Orion's helm, which flickered and jumped and Orion looked around. Hal strode slowly over to the Little Sister, keeping alert to other movement around him. As he got closer, he saw the Little Sister was playing with wooden blocks, with letters adorning the sides. They clacked and clicked as she placed them on top of each other and side by side.

"Hal, where are you?" Orion asked, lightly stepping forward. Hal ignored Orion and kneeled down in front of the Little Sister, who placed a final block and turned to look straight at the hidden Hal. His blood froze, staring into the blazing yellow eyes of the Little Sister. The Sister pointed slowly at the blocks, drawing Hal's gaze with her diminutive hand.

_**HELLO HALCYON MY NAME IS LYRII**_

Hal looked slowly back to Lyrii, the Little Sister, in disbelief. She reached over and grabbed her extraction needle, which compacted down into the handle, with the extraction bottle sliding into the handle and the needle sliding into that. She slung it over her shoulder using a dirty piece of knotted, blood stained cloth. It was presumably taken from the corpse of a Splicer, killed by her Big Daddy or Sister protector. Lyrii stood up, stumbling a bit. Hal instinctively reached a hand out to steady the little girl, softly putting a heavily armored hand on her tiny shoulder to stop her swaying.

"Thanks Big Brother!" She exclaimed, clasping Hal's hand. It looked massive in comparison to her own hand. Hal grabbed a hold and helped her climb onto his shoulder, letting the Natural Camouflage drop. Suddenly the lights flicked on, illuminating the room with harsh white light. Hal spun around suddenly, causing Lyrii to slip off his shoulder with a squeak. He caught her with his right and flicked out the blade on his left, slashing at the person behind him while pulling Lyrii in close to his body.

The blade sparked and skidded along an incoming three foot long needle, deflecting it wide to the side and throwing its wielder off balance. The second slash from Hal's blade sliced through the metal brace on one leg of his assailant. A third cut through the brace on the other leg. The fourth and fifth destroyed the needle apparatus on the right arm and a sixth traced a line through the circular port on the spherical helm facing him. This all took place within a few seconds. Shards of needle and glass clinked and clicked as they hit the floor. Lyrii tapped on Hal's breastplate.

"Why are you and Sister fighting? Did I do something wrong?" Lyrii asked, worry crossing her face. Hal inspected the enemy in front of him. It was a Big Sister, complete with harpoon and the distinctive sphere-shaped helmet, which now had a diagonal line through the view port, cracking the glass. There was also a bright silver line above the port. As Hal watched, the glass cracked a bit more and started to fall out, revealing a set of glinting eyes, the color of a certain stone he had remembered seeing in posters of the rich and wealthy wearing, before the Big Sister jumped away and leaped into a vent in the ceiling.

More Big Sisters dropped out of the ceiling from varying vents, completely surrounding Hal and Orion. Hal's eyes blazed red as he reached up and slid Lyrii into the cage on his back, securing the latches tightly. About forty or so needles slid out and various plasmids flickered and sparked to life. Hal unsheathed his twin needles and electricity arced between them as a crackling sheath of lightning covered the blade on his other arm. He roared shook the room, causing the Big Sisters to winch slightly.

"_**I'll take you all on if I have to!**_" He roared at the crowd, crouching low and preparing to attack.

"Hal! Stop!" Orion yelled across the room, struggling to look through the crowd. He gave up and started to push his way through the crowd towards Hal, but the Big Sisters held him back. One Sister stepped forward. She looked a bit different than the others, in that her suit was much more worn out and older than the others. Her needle didn't retract and the design of her helmet and suit were a bit different than the others around her.

"Orion, you and I will talk later about Adonis." The Big Sister, presumably Emma, called back to him. She turned back to Hal. "As to you, Brother, I must request you put Lyrii down." Hal stared straight at her.

"No." He responded shortly, already examining Emma for weaknesses, flaws, weak points in armor and for openings to attack. Emma readied a ball of flame and her needle.

"Stop fighting!"Lyrii exclaimed, undoing the latches on the cage and crawling onto Hal's shoulder. She jumped to the ground, stumbling again. The blade slid back as fast as the lighting covering it and Hal placed a steadying hand on her shoulder. Lyrii looked back and smiled, then strode forward and looked up at Emma. "Please?" She asked, yellow eyes wide. Emma looked down at her, then her shoulders slumped and the fire dissipated.

"Fine, but you and I," Emma said, pointing at Hal, "are going to have a long chat, understand? And that isn't a suggestion either."


End file.
